Helping third sector organisations use audio to share sensitive stories online

For storytelling on the web, video is great. When a person talks about their experience in a video, it can be more engaging than the same words in text. Seeing a human face and hearing the story in her own words makes a story more authentic.

Here’s an example of a woman telling Birmingham Settlement what she has learned about how to use the internet:

But what if a person wants to share their story about a negative or dangerous experience? What if that person wants to share their story but is still at risk?

Say, a woman who has left an abusive partner, and wants to share her story to help other women who may be trapped in a violent relationship. Say, a woman wants to talk about how she wants to join in local activities but cultural sensitivities mean she does not want to be recognised.

How can her story be shared online – to raise awareness or support other women in similar situations – anonymously?

Audio can be an effective way to capture a sensitive story and to share it anonymously.

Podnosh help train front line workers in third sector organisations, community groups and charities – such as Gateway Family Services and Birmingham Settlement – to use social media to raise awareness about their work and the people they help.

One way we do this is to encourage workers in these organisations to capture stories of the people they help every day.

To do this sensitively, we help people learn to use tools like Audioboo to capture audio stories using a mobile phone or a laptop with a built-in microphone.

By using tools like Audioboo, the organisations we help can embed the audio clips in their own websites, post safely in social networks and make the audio available for reuse by other organisations or individuals, spreading the story into their networks.